Hundreds support Andy Reid at his son's funeral

Hundreds support Andy Reid at his son's funeral

From Comcast SportsNet
BROOMALL, Pa. (AP) -- NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Browns President Mike Holmgren and Patriots coach Bill Belichick were among more than 900 people who packed a Mormon church for the funeral service of Garrett Reid, son of Eagles coach Andy Reid. Garrett Reid was found dead in his dorm room Sunday morning at Lehigh University, where he was assisting the Eagles strength and conditioning coach during training camp. The 29-year-old recovering drug addict had seemingly turned his life around. Many current and former players, coaches and other league officials traveled from all across the country to pay their respects Tuesday morning at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The list included Ravens coach John Harbaugh, Saints interim coach Joe Vitt and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, Colts general manager Ryan Grigson and Browns general manager Tom Heckert. "Andy prides himself on being a rock. All of us in this business have to be like that a little bit," Holmgren said. "But when it comes to something as personal as this, his humanness and who he is comes out, and that's OK. He reacted like every other father would react." Holmgren called Reid, the first coach he hired in Green Bay, the "son I never had." One of Holmgren's four daughters used to babysit Reid's children. He said young Garrett was a "rambunctious guy" with a "great personality." The receiving line was so long that it wrapped around the church and delayed the start of the service for more than an hour. Andy Reid was at the front of the line with his wife Tammy, sons Britt and Spencer and daughters Crosby and Drew Ann. "He was comforting us," said Harbaugh, a former assistant under Reid. "He wrapped me up in a big bear hug, and he told me everything was going to be alright. That's the Andy I know." Buses brought Eagles players and team employees from camp at Lehigh and the NovaCare practice complex in Philadelphia. Donovan McNabb, Brian Westbrook and Jeremiah Trotter were among Reid's former players in attendance. Some residents in the quaint neighborhood stood outside their homes along the street across from the church with signs offering condolences and security personnel on the grounds wore Eagles caps. Garrett's uncle Bart Winters, husband of Tammy Reid's sister, Cindy Winters, delivered the eulogy. Crosby Reid sang Garrett's favorite hymn: "My Heavenly Father Loves Me." "The one thing I took from the service more than anything was that Garrett was a friend of everybody," Harbaugh said. "The kids at school that were kind of struggling a little bit, he was their friend. The guys that were picked last for the basketball team, he was their friend. He would take everybody under his wing. That's a trait I think he gets from Andy." Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie choked up talking to reporters afterward. "The team loves this man, Andy," Lurie said. "It's hard to explain. As a coach and a human, he is fully involved. He is one of these people that shares his life and his love and his passion for the football team and the extended family, and it is so appreciated by everybody that works for him. It's not something you can see in press conferences, it's not something you can see after a loss or a win, it's just how he is as a person. He is just incredibly respected." Reid missed two days of practice, but plans to coach Thursday night's preseason opener against Pittsburgh. "He wants to get right back in there," Lurie said.

Oakland, Alameda County to vote on possible Raiders stadium term sheet next week

Oakland, Alameda County to vote on possible Raiders stadium term sheet next week

The Oakland City Council and Alameda County Supervisors will soon hold a public hearing and vote on a term sheet for a stadium proposal designed to keep the Raiders in Oakland, the City of Oakland announced on Friday afternoon.

These actions will occur on Dec. 13, as local authorities attempt to expedite a stadium plan that will prevent the Raiders from being approved to relocate to the Las Vegas market.

Oakland and Alameda County have paired with Fortress Investment Group to create a stadium funding plan that does not include taxpayer dollars. The public will contribute to infrastructure improvements, but stadium construction will come from private sources.

The private investment group is fronted by former NFL players Ronnie Lott and Rodney Peete.

A financial framework, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, can be viewed here. More details about this Oakland stadium plan should be released next week.

City and county votes are the next step in creating a plan enticing enough to the NFL that it would pump the brakes on allowing the Raiders to move to Las Vegas.

That is Raiders owner Mark Davis’ stated desire. He has not negotiated with local public officials in some time, pouring focus into a Las Vegas stadium plan that has already received $750 million in public subsidy to construct if the Raiders are given the green light to move.

There are several complications associated with this deal, most notably that Davis wants no part in it. The NFL is reportedly intrigued by Oakland’s market potential, and generally prefers that teams remain in their home markets.

Reliable on the mound, Melancon seeks thrills off of it

Reliable on the mound, Melancon seeks thrills off of it

SAN FRANCISCO — At his introductory press conference Friday, new Giant Mark Melancon was asked about the fearlessness it takes to be a big league closer. He looked down at the first row of seats, where his wife Mary Catherine was sitting in a brand new No. 41 jersey, smiling.

“You should probably ask my wife that,” Melancon joked.

When the Melancons got married, Mary Catherine had a calligrapher write up an actual bucket list of things the two could do together and presented it to Mark as a wedding gift.

“It’s framed and it’s in our bathroom,” Mark said during an interview with CSN Bay Area on Friday. “It’s literally in our bathroom and we look at it all the time and try to plan out what we’re going to get done. Because it is on paper and it’s a goal and all that, we’ve checked off probably 40 or 50 percent of it in six years.”

The check marks include biking down the world’s “most dangerous road” in Bolivia and diving with great white sharks near New Zealand. The Melancons have visited Dubai and gone on a safari and stayed in countless cities off the beaten path. They have gone underwater with manta rays and high in the air in a blimp. Some of the items are simple ones, like attending a Nascar race.

“There are a few items we’ll have to wait for until after baseball,” Melancon said. “We try to keep it safe of course, but it’s just a lot of fun. It’s a way to kind of bring creativity and allow ourselves to do things you could easily say no to.”

The standard MLB contract prohibits quite a few “dangerous” activities, and with a four-year, $62 million deal that is currently the second-biggest ever for a reliever, Melancon will hold off on certain trips, like skiing the Swiss Alps. “Attend the Kentucky Derby” is on the bucket list, but because the Derby is in May, that one is saved for retirement. In his first year with the Giants, Melancon hopes to put a check mark next to “sit backstage at a concert.”

Melancon said the thrill-seeking has slowed down a bit because the couple now has three young children, two daughters and a son. The Giants are hoping the more relaxed vibe carries over into their ninth innings. Team officials have been told by past Melancon employers that they signed a closer who is “boring” on the mound, in a good way. With a cutter-heavy approach, Melancon tends to get his ninth-inning work done quickly and without drama. That’s a welcome change of pace for an organization that has grown accustomed to “torture” late in games.

“He was our target and we’ve gotten to know him, and the more we’ve gotten to know him the better we’ve felt about the fact that he was really meant to be a Giant,” team president and CEO Larry Baer said.

The Giants had Melancon as their top offseason choice — and only big offseason expenditure — all along. Team officials feel even better about that approach after watching Melancon tour the ballpark Friday morning and meet with season-ticket holders and team employees. The fit was an easy one, with one member of the front office saying Melancon is “practically straight out of Giants central casting.”

Melancon’s new teammates feel the same way. He said eight to 10 of them have reached out since the deal was announced Monday. The group includes the types of players who are on any free agent’s bucket list of potential teammates. A ground ball pitcher, Melancon is looking forward to working with a Gold Glove infield.

“That’s kind of an attractive thing to have a couple of Gold Glovers (up the middle) and then being able to throw to Buster is icing on the cake,” he said. “When you put things together on paper and go ‘who do you want to throw to and back you up,’ this team stands out.”